The opening of the narrative sets the frame: the author insists it is not a polemic but a fictional portrait of a mind’s progress, while the French translator’s preface situates the work amid the Oxford Movement and praises its depiction of England’s religious currents. The story then begins with Charles Reding, the sensitive son of an Anglican clergyman, educated at Eton and newly arrived at Oxford, where he befriends the brighter, more combative Sheffield. Their days include a visit with Bateman, a bachelier restoring a Gothic chapel, prompting lively talk about ritual forms—piscinas, tabernacles, candles—and whether such externals are meaningful or mere show, alongside banter about sermons, academic formalities, and Paley’s evidences. A chance meeting with the seasoned fellow Malcolm adds a wry, insider view of Oxford fashions and religious agitation, suggesting that movements wax and wane even as Charles’s inner questions quietly deepen. (This is an automatically generated summary.)